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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Experiences: The New Status Symbol
In the past, status for many has been measured by what you own. But with the Great Recession and the environmental crisis, status is increasingly being measured by what you…
Apple’s iPad Meets the Retail Business
It wasn’t hard to guess where the recent Ad Age article was going with the headline: IPad Poised to Revolutionize Retail Industry. So what exactly is the iPad going to do…
Layaway Every Day
While many retailers have done away with layaway programs, others such as Kmart have benefited from filling the void. Kmart’s parent company, Sears Holdings, said it saw double-digit growth in…
CSD: Social Networking Takes C-Store Retail by Storm
Last September, 7-Eleven launched an online music video competition at its frozen beverage fan page, www.slurpee.com. Kwik Trip Inc. has found social networking allows customers to access up-to-date information about…
Puma’s Clever Little Shoe Bags
And so another old friend may bite the dust as Puma announces a new design for its shoeboxes. In the future, customers will receive shoes packed in “cardboard frames wrapped…
Costco v. Omega
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that pits the Swiss watchmaker Omega against Costco over the warehouse club’s sales of the company’s timepieces bought on the…
BrainTrust Query: Hey, U.S. Retailers Looking to Canada! We’re Polite, to a Point…
A recent article from The Wall Street Journal explores how certain U.S. apparel retailers are looking to Canada for an easy way to expand their locations. Is expansion into Canada…
Best Buy Going Mobile in a Small Way
Best Buy plans to open somewhere between 75 and 100 of its 1,500 square-foot mobile phone stores this year in addition to the 77 it currently has in operation. In…
Full Retail Returns to Luxury Stores
Seems like it was only a year ago when everybody, including luxury department and specialty stores, were practically giving product away. According to a Bloomberg report, those days are gone…
BrainTrust Query: I Wouldn’t Join Any Club That Would Have Me as a Member
Groucho Marx once said that he wouldn’t join any club that would have him as a member. But in today’s world of consumer connections and social media, forming a club…
Retailers Try Selling Stuff
There’s only so much cutting any retailer can do to prop up the bottom line. Eventually, merchants need to move the top line upward and that, according to a Wall…
LVMH Eyes Vacancies in Hotels
LVMH, the owner of fashion names such as Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Puma and Donna Karan, announced plans to open a series of luxury hotels starting in Oman and Egypt. The…
Costco’s Manhattan Project
Costco’s first store in Manhattan, opened in East Harlem last November, has underperformed so far. The subpar showing is being blamed on everything from issues around parking access to whether…
BrainTrust Query: The Boomer Apparel Opportunity
According to The NPD Group, women’s apparel rang up over $100 billion last year. So who’s buying this apparel? The Boomer portion of this population represents slightly over 40 percent…
Wal-Mart Boxed In By Price Positioning
Recently, Wal-Mart announced it was rolling back prices on thousands of items in an effort to rejuvenate a business that has reported disappointing results in recent quarters. Does Wal-Mart’s price positioning…
FDBuyer: Isn’t it time that frozen food came out of the Ice Age?
Unlike the rest of the food departments, frozen has the ability to be a total store within itself. But few if any retailers lay out the department this way. Frozen…
The Economy Has Turned the Corner, Mostly
According to Ken Kremar, Sara Johnson, and Laura Hodges on an IHS Global Insight webinar yesterday, the U.S. economy has turned the corner and prospects for the mid-term look pretty…
Bill Would Plant Supermarkets in Food Deserts
New legislation proposed by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and Rep. Nuydia Velazquez, both of New York, would invest $1 billion in federal loans and grants to help build 2,100 grocery stores…
Whole Foods Defies Whole Paycheck Tag
“Whole Paycheck? Not anymore.” That was the assessment of Whole Foods’ pricing position by JPMorgan analyst Charles Grom in an interview with the New York Post. Do you think consumers…
RSR Research: Schmatta Girl – Returning to My Roots
As late as 1975, 95 percent of the garments sold in the U.S. were made in the U.S.; by 2009 just five percent were made here. What has been the…
Levi’s Works to Remake Its Image
It wouldn’t be totally unfair to compare Levi Strauss’ business in recent years to some of its more worn and weathered jeans. Now, the company is trying to go upscale…
